Instant messaging refers to the process of exchanging text messages between two or more people. Instant messaging differs from e-mail in that conversations happen in realtime. The parties in the conversation typically see each line of text right after it is typed (line-by-line). To some people instant messaging seems more like a telephone conversation than exchanging letters. Also known as a “chatting,” instant messaging has become very popular for both business and personal use. Instant messaging is often used as a way to avoid telephone tag, whether the communication continues as text messages or winds up as a traditional phone call.
An instant messaging (hereinafter, “IM”) client is a client which connects to an IM service. Many different IM clients are known to those skilled in the art. Examples of IM clients include Yahoo! Messenger, MSN Messenger, America Online's Instant Messenger (AIM), and so forth.
IM clients allow a user to send and receive instant messages via an instant messaging network (e.g., the Internet). Many known IM clients also allow a user to convey an “online status” to other users. For example, some IM clients allow a user to set her/his online status to one of various predefined statuses, such as “Invisible,” “Busy,” “On The Phone,” etc. Some known IM clients offer additional functionality, such as the ability to be notified when a “buddy” (i.e., someone in the user's contact list) changes her/his online status, the ability to send and receive files (including audio/video files), etc.
Currently, an IM client running on a device allows a user to send and receive instant messages from that device. However, known IM clients do not have the ability to allow a user to send instant messages from or receive instant messages at one or more other devices. In other words, known IM clients do not allow instant messages to be sent and received remotely through the IM client.
Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) is an architecture for pervasive peer-to-peer networking of a wide variety of electronic devices, including personal computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), television set-top boxes, cellular telephones, intelligent appliances, and so forth. UPnP defines a set of common protocols that devices use to join a network and describe themselves and their capabilities, which enables other devices and people to use them without setup or configuration.
In view of the foregoing, benefits may be realized by systems and methods for implementing an instant messaging remote control service.